Gyeongju hanok restaurant family meal with udon noodles: Dongyang

I wanted a comforting Korean meal I could eat with family, so I went to Dongyang Baekban Gyeongju Hwangridan-gil Main Branch.

Where is Dongyang Baekban on Hwangridan-gil, and how do you get there?

Dongyang Baekban sits right in the heart of Gyeongju's Hwangridan-gil, so it wasn't hard to find. Just head one block up from the main street, and it's across from Hwangnam Market.

The first thing that caught my eye stepping in was the hanok (traditional Korean house) atmosphere.

Dongyang Baekban Gyeongju Hwangridan-gil Main Branch 1056-5 Poseok-ro, Gyeongju, Gyeongbuk, South Korea Daily 11:00–21:00 Break time 15:00–17:00 Last order 20:00 (Closed Sept 24–25 for Chuseok) Parking: nearby public parking lot, alley Baby chairs available Separate men's/women's restrooms

What are the hanok room seats like for a family meal?

Inside Dongyang Baekban Hwangridan-gil Main Branch, the space is divided into several small rooms, each with two tables. It's a converted hanok with a cozy feel, so it felt a bit like visiting grandma's old house.

They kept the old hanok structure and mood largely intact, giving it a different charm from your typical modern restaurant. The wood and the warm hanok atmosphere blended together, making it comfortable to eat with family.

Each room had two tables set up.

Sitting by the window especially, we could see the alley through the big glass while waiting for our food, so it wasn't boring at all. Dongyang Baekban sits right in the middle of the bustling, tourist-filled Hwangridan-gil, but once inside, it felt much calmer and cozier.

Probably because they get a lot of family customers, baby chairs were well stocked too.

There was a receipt review event, and we got to join in for strawberry ice gyeongdan (rice cake) and a round of the old-school retro draw game.

Dongyang Baekban menu and prices

Here's the menu at this Gyeongju favorite, Dongyang Baekban.

• Caviar rice bowl 7.0
• Beef tartare rice bowl 6.0
• Salted pollack roe rice bowl 5.0
• Spicy green chili rice bowl 5.0
• Egg rice bowl 3.5
• Gamtae (seaweed) rice bowl 5.5
• Gondre (aster) rice bowl 6.0
• Sumi chicken stew 28.0
• Tomato cheese chicken stew 30.0
• Five-color steamed vegetable jjimdak 28.0
• Pork kimchi dureuchigi 27.0
• Korean beef tripe hot pot 35.0
• Summer beef mulhoe 12.0
• Eunyi mushroom black-rice-crust chicken hot pot 38.0
• Yeonpyeong-do seasoned crab 9.0

We ordered like this: tomato cheese chicken stew x1, ramyeon/udon noodle add x1 each, rice x1, soju x1.

How does the tomato cheese chicken stew (30,000 won) taste?

After a short wait, the tomato cheese chicken stew and basic side dishes arrived.

What I liked most was that it came pre-cooked. There was no need to boil it forever at the table — once the glass noodles were done, we could dig right in, which made things easy.

Looking inside the pot, it was packed with egg, enoki mushrooms, glass noodles, carrots, garlic and more, plus whole tomatoes and lemon slices that stood out.

The broth was quite dark in color, so at first I wondered if it'd be really spicy, but once I tried it, it turned out mild enough even for someone who can't handle spice at all. The tomato added its own umami and tangy flavor, giving it a different taste from the usual dakbokkeumtang (spicy braised chicken stew). It's like a fusion take on the familiar stew, with the tomato flavor layered on top.

Udon noodle add-on and rice mixed with seaweed flakes

No soup dish is complete without noodles. They added udon noodles for us, and gave us a wide bowl with seaweed flakes so we could mix in rice too — the rich broth went great with both the noodles and the rice, and we finished every bit.

Who should visit Dongyang Baekban, and when?

If you're wandering Gyeongju's Hwangridan-gil and craving a warm soup dish, this is a great place for a cozy meal with friends, a partner, or family in a nostalgic hanok setting. If you're after hearty, well-made Korean food, give Dongyang Baekban a try on your Hwangridan-gil trip.